Gasoline engine governor



June 20, 1967 V. R. KAUFMAN GASOLINE ENGINE GOVERNOR Filed Oct. 24, 1965 INVENTOR' VERNON R KAUFMAN ATTORNEY United States Patent 3,326,126 GASOLINE ENGINE GOVERNOR Vernon R. Kaufman, Racine, Wis., assignor to Jacobsen Manufacturing Company, Racine, Wis., a corporation of Wisconsin Filed Oct. 24, 1965, Ser. No. 504,554 4 Claims. (Cl. 123-103) This invention relates to a gasoline engine governor.

Gasoline engine governors which are used on small gasoline engines and are responsive to the air stream created by the speed of rotation of the flywheel or like rotor are well known in the art. These governors control the throttle plate to rotate the plate in the carburetor fuel passageway and thereby open or close the passageway by setting the plate in either an aligned or transverse position with respect to the flow of fuel through the passageway. Of course the governor also controls the throttle plate to set it in positions intermediate the open and closed positions and thereby control the speed of the engine. To do this, the rotation of the throttle plate is commonly controlled by an air vane disposed adjacent the engine rotor or flywheel which carries an air impeller or like air vanes so that the rotor creates an air stream and directs it against the governor air vane. The rotation of the rotor in creating the air stream generally causes the governor air vane to pivot about a fixed axis and thereby translate the pivotal motion to the throttle plate by means of a suitable connection between the air vane and throttle plate.

The present invention is also concerned with an air vane type of throttle control, and it is a general object to provide a governor for a gasoline engine wherein the governor is an improvement over those heretofore known in that it is more sensitive in its function of responding to the engine speed and controlling the throttle plate, but it is nevertheless sturdy in its construction, easy to manufacture and maintain, can be readily adapted to be adjustable, and is reliable and eflicient in its operation. In accomplishing these several objectives, the governor actually renders the engine more eflicient so that it is similar to providing a larger horsepower engine, such as for instance the better regulation possible with the instant governor as disclosed herein is similar to making the engine with an additional fractional horsepower increase over that which the engine would otherwise produce.

Still another object of this invention is to provide a gasoline engine governor wherein the throttle plate operates through an optimum angle between open position and close position, and in the present instance the angle is at least approximately 70 degrees.

Still another object of this invention is to provide a gasoline engine governor which operates with a minimum of frictional resistance within its mounting and itself and is thereby more sensitive and responsive to the speed of the engine so that the throttle will be set in accordance with speed of the engine and with the load to which the engine is subjected. In accomplishing this particular object, the governor is arranged to operate with a minimum of friction in its parts and without any customary linkages extending between the air vane and the throttle plate, and the governor is therefore directly responsive to the engine speed and is highly sensitive thereto. Still further, the governor parts are made of a few parts of only nominal weight so that there is a very low inertia factor within the parts and thus when the governor is used in an installation such as in a moving lawn mower, the bouncing of the mower and the engine do not affect the operation of the governor.

Still a further object of this invention is to provide a gasoline engine governor which produces a substantially uniform or flat load curve in respect to the force applied 3,326,196 Patented June 20, 1967 to the governor air vane itself. Also, there is no fixed connection between the air vane and the throttle plate.

Other objects and advantages become apparent upon reading the following description in light of the accompanying drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 is an elevational view of a fragment of a preferred embodiment of this invention related to a gasoline engine and its carburetor, and wth parts thereof broken away.

FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken on the line 2-2 of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken on the line 3-3 of FIG. 2.

The gasoline engine is shown to include the engine rotor of flywheel 10 which is only fragmentarily shown, and which carries the usual air vanes 11 such that upon rotation of the rotor in response to rotation of the engine crankshaft (not shown) the air vanes 11 will create an air stream which is confined by a shroud or housing 12 of circular configuration and spaced from the tips of the rotor vanes 11, all in a well-known manner. The engine also includes the carburetor generally dessignated 13, and of course the gasoline fuel will flow through the carburetor 13 and into the engine cylinder (not shown) for the usual operation of the engine.

In this general environment, the engine governor is located, and it is generally designated 14. The governor includes the air vane member 16 and the connector or plate 17 which is shown mounted on the throttle plate shaft 18 of the carburetor 13. A throttle plate 19 is thus located in the carburetor fuel passageway 21, and the plate 19 of course controls the flow of fuel through the passageway 21 and into the engine. A screw 22 is shown extending between the plate 19 and the shaft 18 to connect the two together so that rotation of the shaft 18 will be correspondingly transmitted to the butterfly type of plate 19.

Similarly, a choke shaft 23 is rotatably mounted in the carburetor housing 24, and the shaft 23 carries the choke plate 26 such that rotation of the shaft 23 will likewise rotate the choke plate 26 to open or close the fuel passageway 21.

The plate or connector 17 is of course mounted on the throttle shaft 18 so that the two are fixed together and rotation of the plate 17 transmits identical rotation to the shaft 18 and thus the throttle plate 19, as desired. To induce rotation to the plate 17, the air vane 16 constitutes one portion of the control member generally designated 27, and the control member 27 has another portion 28. The portions 16 and 28 are disposed on opposite sides of a pivot pin or mounting member 29 which provides the mounting for the control member 27. Thus the member- 27 has a fulcrum portion 31 pivotally mounted on the pin 29 which in turn is supported in bosses 32 and 33 stationarily disposed and included as a part of the engine.

The control member 27 is therefore pivotally mounted to have its upper portion 16 present an air vane 34 to the air stream created 'by the rotor vanes 11, and of course the vane 34 is disposed in an opening designated 36 and defined between the rotor vanes 11 and the shroud 12. Thus rotation of the rotor and consequently movement of the rotor vanes 11, of which of course there are a usual plurality of vanes 11, create an air stream, as indicated by the arrows A'in FIG. 2, and the stream is directed against the air vane 34 to pivot the control member 27. Actually, the pivotal movement of the member 27 is from a position lower than that shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 with respect to its air vane 34, and up to a position as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, which is only the upper portion 16 is transmitted to the lower portion 28. The connection between the lower portion 28 and the throttle control plate 17 is shown to be a ball-and-slot type of connection in that the governor control member 27 has a spherical lower end or ball 37 afiixed thereto, and the plate 17 has a slot or groove 38 which receives the ball 37. In this manner, there is a very low frictional relation between the control member 27 and the plate 17, and thus the governor is very sensitive, as desired. Even beyond the ball and groove structure shown and described for low frictional relation, the control member 27 is preferably made of a nylon material and the plate 17 is made of a metal, and of course the contact points between the ball 37 and the walls 39 and 41 defining the opposite sides of the plate groove 38, are very smooth to minimize friction therebetween.

Of course the engine has a base 42 which supports the bosses 32 and 33, and the base has an opening 43 for the extension of the control member 27 therethrough and for allowing pivotal action of the control member 27 with of course only a limited, if any, escape of air through the opening 43.

The drawings further show that the choke plate 26 and the throttle plate 19 may be controlled together, as desired, and thus the throttle plate 19 may be influenced in its setting by the setting of the engine choke itself. To do this, a connection is provided between the two plates, and it will be noted that the choke plate shaft 23 has a plate 44 which is suitably connected to an arm 46 pivotally mounted on a boss 47 by means of a screw 50. Thus one end of the arm 46 contacts the plate 44 to rotate the latter, and the other end of the arm 46, that is the end designaed 48 in FIG. 2, support a tension spring 49 which is connected to the arm end 48 at one end while the other end of the spring 49 is connected to a support 51 on the control member 27. Thus the tension spring 49 yieldingly urges the upper portion 16 of the control member 27 against the air stream designated A. Thus selected rotated positions of the arm 46 provide for more or less tension in the spring 49, and the rotation of the arm 46 also affects the rotation of the choke plate connector 44 and thus the choke plate itself. Cable or like control means may be used for setting the arm 46, and such means is common and is therefore not shown herein.

The drawings actually show the throttle plate 19' and the control member 27 in about a central position. That is, the plate 19 and the control member 27 could both pivot to a position even more responsive to the force of the air stream A against the air vane 34. Of course in the no-load condition of the engine, the engine is operating at a high speed and thereby creating a maximum force in its air stream A. This causes the control member 27 to pivot further clockwise in FIG. 2 and thus close further the throttle plate 19 in the fuel passageway 21, as desired. Conversely, when the air vane 34 is not subjected to high force of the air stream, then the control member 27 is pivoted counter-clockwise from the position shown in FIG. 2, and then the throttle plate 19 is more aligned or parallel with the passageway 21. The more aligned position of course permits more fuel to fiow through the passageway 21 and thus sustain the operation of the engine, as desired.

Of course the carburetor 13 has a suitable fiange 52 containing bolt holes 53 for mounting the carburetor with respect to the engine. The carburetor also has a gasoline bowl or reservoir 54 which contains suitable and conventional jets and threaded needle controls for setting the idle speeds of the engine, all in a conventional and desired manner. The gasoline inlet tube 56 is shown provided on the carburetor 13 for introduction of gasoline to the carburetor by means of a gas line (not shown). Also, the flow of fuel, that is, the air and gasoline mixture, through the passageway 21 will induce the throttle plate to rotate to a position aligned with the passageway 21. Thus the control member 27 operates to resist the opening or alignment of the throttle plate 19, and thus the ball 37 may be smaller in diameter than the spacing between the walls 39 and 41 of the groove or slot in the connector plate 17 since the ball 37 need bear against only one wall 39.

Since the plate 17 rotates about the exis of the shaft 18, and the control member end 37 moves only in a plane transverse to the axis of pivot mounting 29, the end 37 will slide along the wall 39, substantially in a radial direction with respect to the plate 17. The groove 38 is adequate to provide for this radial motion. An important point is that there is no fixed connection between the control member 27 and the plate 17, and the respective parts can be readily separated and reassembled, and the contact therebetween is not complicated in that it and does not provide for a fixed connection so no adjustment need be made between the two parts in order to have the desired sensitive response to motion therebetween.

While a specific embodiment of this invention has been shown and described, it should be obvious that certain changes could be made in the embodiment and the invention should therefore be determined only by the scope of the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. An automatic governor for a gasoline engine having a rotor with vanes and a carburetor with a rotatable throttle plate for controlling flow of fuel through the carburetor, comprising a member pivotally mounted on said engine and having an air vane extending to one side of the pivot axis and exposed to the air stream created by said rotor vanes to pivot said member in one direction and with said member having a spherical end extending to the other side of said pivot axis, a shaft attached to said throttle plate, a connector fixedly connected to said shaft and having a slot extending transverse to the axis of said shaft and axially offset therefrom and receiving said spherical end and adapted to transmit the pivotal movement of said spherical end to said shaft and rotate the latter and said throttle plate, and yielding means connected to said member for biasing the latter in the pivotal direction opposite to said one direction urged by the air stream.

2. An automatic governor for a gasoline engine having a rotor with vanes and a carburetor with a rotatable throttle plate for controlling flow of fuel through the carburetor and with the flow urging said plate in one direction of rotation, comprising a control member pivotally mounted on said engine and having an air vane extending to one side of the pivot axis and exposed to the air stream created by said rotor vanes to pivot said control member in one direction and with said control member having an extendingend on the other side of the pivot axis, a shaft attached to said throttle plate, a connector fixedly connected to said shaft and extending transverse to the axis of said shaft, an anti-friction sliding connection between said extending end of said control member and said connector at the location offset from the axis of said shaft to have the pivotal motion of said control member rotate said connector and said throttle plate in the direction counter to the direction said throttle plate is urged to rotate by the flow of fuel, and yielding means connected to said control member for biasing the latter in the pivotal direction opposite to said one direction urged by the air stream.

3. An automatic governor for a gasoline engine having a rotor with vanes and a carburetor with a rotatable throttle plate for controlling flow of fuel through the carburetor, comprising a control member of a light-weight plastic material pivotally mounted on said engine and having an air vane extending to one side of the pivot axis and exposed to the air stream created by said rotor vanes to pivot said control member in one direction and with said control member having a spherical end extending to the other side of said pivot axis, a shaft attached to said throttle plate, a plate fixedly connected to said shaft and extending transverse to the axis of said shaft and having a slot axially offset from said axis and receiving said spherical end and adapted to transmit the pivotal movement of said spherical end to said shaft and rotate the latter and said throttle plate, and yielding means connected to said control member for biasing the latter in the pivotal direction opposite to said one direction urged by the air stream.

4. An automatic governor for a gasoline engine having a rotor with vanes and a carburetor with a rotatable throttle plate for controlling flow of fuel through the carburetor, comprising a control member pivotally mounted on said engine and having an air vane extending to one side of the pivot axis and exposed to the air stream created by said rotor vanes to pivot said control member in one direction and With said control member having an end extending to the other side of said pivot axis, a shaft attached to said throttle plate, a plate fixedly connected to said shaft, said end of said control member and said plate being in contact with only a sliding contact therebetWeen at a location offset from the axis of said shaft and With the sliding contact being adapted to transmit the pivotal movement of said control member to said shaft and rotate the latter and said throttle plate, and yielding means connected to said control member for biasing the latter in the pivotal direction opposite to said one direction urged by the air stream.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2/1928 Mack.

9/1963 Rice 123-103 

4. AN AUTOMATIC GOVERNOR FOR A GASOLINE ENGINE HAVING A ROTOR WITH VANES AND A CARBURETOR WITH A ROTATABLE THROTTLE PLATE FOR CONTROLLING FLOW OF FUEL THROUGH THE CARBURETOR, COMPRISING A CONTROL MEMBER PIVOTALLY MOUNTED ON SAID ENGINE AND HAVING AN AIR VANE EXTENDING TO ONE SIDE OF THE PIVOT AXIS AND EXPOSED TO THE AIR STREAM CREATED BY SAID ROTOR VANES TO PIVOT SAID CONTROL MEMBER IN ONE DIRECTION AND WITH SAID CONTROL MEMBER HAVING AN END EXTENDING TO THE OTHER SIDE OF SAID PIVOT AXIS, A SHAFT ATTACHED TO SAID THROTTLE PLATE, A PLATE FIXEDLY CONNECTED TO SAID SHAFT, SAID END OF SAID CONTROL MEMBER AND SAID PLATE BEING IN CONTACT WITH ONLY A SLIDING CONTACT THEREBETWEEN AT A LOCATION OFFSET FROM THE AXIS OF SAID SHAFT AND WITH THE SLIDING CONTACT BEING ADAPTED TO TRANSMIT THE PIVOTAL MOVEMENT OF SAID CONTROL MEMBER TO SAID SHAFT AND ROTATE THE LATTER AND SAID THROTTLE PLATE, AND YIELDING MEANS CONNECTED TO SAID CONTROL MEMBER FOR BIASING THE LATTER IN THE PIVOTAL DIRECTION OPPOSITE TO SAID ONE DIRECTION URGED BY THE AIR STREAM. 